Reproductive Health

MANILA, Philippines – Breastfeeding advocates have expressed support for recent congressional moves to strengthen the Milk Code to enhance efforts on empowering women and address problems of malnutrition among infants and young children.

From 2000 to 2010, the household population in the Philippine has recorded an increase of 15.8 million persons, or 20.7 percent, according to the results of the 2010 Census of Population and Housing conducted by the National Statistics Office (NSO). However, household size has somewhat contracted with an average 4.6 members from 5.0 persons per…

A couple of days ago, Bishop Gabriel Reyes of the Diocese of Antipolo, writing under the stationery of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, published an ad in the Inquirer and Philippine Star, expressing his disagreement with the views of an unnamed columnist on the merits and demerits of the Reproductive Health bill. The…

MANILA, Philippines – Palace officials made a fresh call on lawmakers not to further delay the passage of the reproductive health (RH) bill. “As President [Aquino has] said, regardless of [the lawmakers’] belief, [they should] end period of debates. They should not pass this [on] to next Congress,” Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office…

SENATOR Vicente ‘Tito’ Sotto’s recent string of plagiarized speeches has certainly taken the cake as one of the Philippines most talked-about current issues. His speeches, however, have not debunked the Reproductive Health Bill. As a matter of fact, more and more advocates and detractors have called for speedy action on the bill in order to,…

The Department of Health (DOH) urged lawmakers on Tuesday to pass the reproductive health (RH) and “sin tax” bills because it would mean more funds for health services for Filipinos.

Manila, Philippines (CNN) — Growing up, Cecilia Lopez hoped to escape poverty by finishing school and becoming a teacher. But now 52 years old and having never finished school, she wishes she had learned a few things. “If I knew back then about the choices in family planning, I would’ve been able to control having…

De La Salle University professors have joined the fray over the Reproductive Health Bill, adding to the voices of nearly 200 Ateneo de Manila University professors who provoked the ire of Catholic bishops last month with their pro-RH statement. Forty-five faculty members of DLSU, which is Catholic-run like its archrival Ateneo, sent media a statement…

MANILA, Philippines – As senators continue to deliberate whether to pass or not the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) Bill, a group of experts urged legislators to consider the stake of the youth in the debate. In a roundtable discussion among experts from the fields of education, adolescent health, law, demography and social sciences on August…

ATENEO TEACHERS’ STAND Having studied House Bill No. 4244 and the amendments proposed by its authors, we conclude that it is rights-based and supportive of state obligations to promote health under the Constitution and international covenants.

Health experts on Thursday warned mothers to avoid giving milk formulas to their babies, saying that breast-fed infants are healthier, smarter and less susceptible to serious diseases. Dr. Howard Sobel, team leader of the Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition Unit of the World Health Organization (WHO), said that babies fed formula milk get sick…

MANILA, Philippines – Inspite of its huge funding, natural family planning (NFP), the only birth control method implemented by the previous administration, rose to only a few points, according to the non-government Likhaan Center for Women’s Health.

A prominent Catholic educators’ group on Wednesday said it is open to “rational, deliberate and conscientious” views of objectors in the academe to the Catholic Church stand on reproductive health (RH).

Jesuit university affirms stand as professors face heresy charges Faculty members who are facing possible charges of heresy for supporting a population control bill aren’t getting any sympathy from Ateneo de Manila University.

MANILA, Philippines – The Ateneo de Manila University served notice on Monday it joins Catholic leaders in withholding support for the RH bill, noting serious concern over some provisions seen as infringing on constitutional rights, while respecting the individual views of 192 faculty members who signed a position paper endorsing the measure.

It’s not exactly an inquisition but 159 members of the Ateneo de Manila University faculty may face investigation for heresy, and sacked—not excommunicated—if found guilty. Bishop Leandro Medroso, in an interview over Church-run Radio Veritas Monday, called for an investigation of the Ateneo faculty members who signed a statement declaring support for the controversial reproductive…

“The single biggest promoter of increased abortions in the Philippines is the anti-RH movement,” says a coalition of reproductive health groups. The groups were reacting to statements made by “anti-RH” senator Tito Sotto, who, “based on evidence copied from Facebook, blogs and other similar sources … accuses several organizations and civil society leaders of promoting…

The US government through the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and agencies affiliated with the United Nations (UN) has been actively pushing the government to promote artificial contraceptives primarily condoms and backs projects that support abortion and in effect violates the country’s sovereignty, Sen. Vicente Sotto III said yesterday in the second installment of…

We have indeed reached one of the most crucial stages of our life as a nation. We are facing a vital crossroad that will determine the kind of society we will have in the future. And this will depend on whether this administration will decide to take the road towards the culture of death or…

MANILA, Philippines – The chief of staff of Sen Vicente “Tito” Sotto III finally admitted that parts of his speech against the RH bill on Wednesday, August 15, were copied from a blog by a foreign author who calls herself the “Healthy Home Economist.”

MANILA, Philippines – The principal authors of the Reproductive Health (RH) bill have proposed at least 10 major amendments to the controversial measure in a bid to soften opposition to it and ensure its final approval in the House of Representatives in the coming weeks.

MANILA, Philippines – The Reproductive Health (RH) bill, in various forms, has languished in Congress for 17 years, but the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) finds it unfair that the government is now “railroading” it.

Faculty members of the Ateneo de Manila University on Monday released a statement in support of House Bill 4244, or The Responsible Parenthood, Reproductive Health and Population and Development Bill.

MANILA, Philippines – President Aquino is seeking P2.54 billion for the administration’s “family health and responsible parenting” program next year, Quezon Rep. Erin Tañada said yesterday. He said the funding is contained in the P2.006-trillion 2013 national budget the President sent to Congress on July 24, a day after his State of the Nation Address.

Manila, Philippines – Director-General Arsenio Balisacan of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) believes a rapidly increasing population is the reason the country’s economic growth has not surpassed neighboring countries in Asia.

MANILA, Philippines – A Protestant Church leader in Davao City said Monday the highly contested Reproductive Health Bill is “not evil” because it offers Filipinos, especially the poor, freedom to plan their families, but stressed that his group respects the position of the Catholic Church.

Human life is a gift. It is a gift because nothing and nobody can give it to itself and oneself, respectively. In fact, even a dear little plant laying fast sleep in the heart of a seed needs the rain and the sun to wake it up to life.

The Human Development and Poverty Reduction (HDPR) Cabinet Cluster has issued a paper strongly endorsing the President’s position on ‘responsible parenthood’. Below is the cluster’s statement in full.

OUT OF CONTEXT. This reference to the research of 2001 Nobel winner George Akerlof was posted on CBCP’s site to oppose the Reproductive Health bill. Editor’s Note: The CBCP reacted to this story on August 6, Monday, and published a piece on its CBCP for Life website. The piece is entitled, “Akerlof contradicted what?”

UN, 20 government agencies back RH bill MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) — The United Nations and 20 Philippine government agencies voiced their support for the passage of a reproductive health (RH) bill that would supposedly promote responsible parenthood. The support came after Catholics staged a protest rally against the bill on Saturday.